Saturday, May 17, 2008

I told you no more...

What is the life of a Mexican mom if she doesn't have her blender any more...My long friend "the blender" died today of over- exercise -I think-.
-Yeah- No more, no more, she said for several weeks. I didn't pay attention and she just stop working.
Linking to my last post, Tita, the heroin of "Como Agua para Chocolate" used a "molcajete" '(kind of a mortar) to blend and make her concoctions of ingredients, a hard job to make salsas and moles. The blender took the place of the molcajete and made life much easier and cooking time adjusted to " modern times".
I used the blender to make the basic salsa (tomatoes and onions) for the red rice and alphabet soups. If you add garlic you have salsa to cook meat or chicken, I used it too for the succhini soup, the cauliflower soup, the potato soup, to hydrate mole, pipian and adobo pastes, and for salsas with chile or tomatillo. I guess I have to buy a new one, but that was my very first blender ever, since Pepe and I started our life together back in Mexico City.

Changing topic and still talking about mothers issues. How is the self esteem of a mother, as a person, damaged for a constant negative responses from her children?.
If I ask for an accomplishment of chores, I get a no, If I do recommendations, they better believe what their friends tell them. How is that I have to do complete lectures of facts, when their friends just say something and they believe it just as an act of faith.
And I won't go further with matter of the "lunch"... I like this, I don't like that; why I didn't have today lemonade, but just plain water; I don't like salami in squares, I prefer it in slices... Maybe I can do as the blender: no more and stop working.

I'm a human being, trying to make a healthy lunch for her kids. That is why I post this song from "Aterciopelados of Colobia", Bolero Falaz. The song talks in some parts of my situation, bad if it is yes, bad if it is no, better do do not ask...my part is when she sings with the flowers' guitar. Now, my self esteem can have a musical indulgence.

P.S. On my girls defense, they do what ever I ask, chores or homeworks and so, but I'd love not to explain and repeat myself so many times.

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Values, passion and mothers.

Mamá....Pasala bien.

I missed posting a Mother's day congratulations to all of you, Mamas. I know -you girls- had a wonderful day, and it seems that every body appreciates a cozy day at home, school made cards, breakfast and some extra "help" around the house. FELICIDADES A TODAS.

As a tradition, in Mexico, El dia de las Madres, is a big, big deal. Families get together, they eat something as mole poblano or other traditional dish, celebrating a la madre, with music, presents and dirty dishes (because at the end, guess who cleans the kitchen). I wanted for this year to celebrate my-self cooking something like that, and have a cake. In short as we say: putting a long table-cloth. But of course nothing like that happened because I didn't planned it in advanced and no desire of dirty dishes for me.

What wonderful would it be to have some body that cooks, when I'm not in the mood. Then I remembered this fabulous book called "Como Agua para Chocolate", that became a Mexican classic movie.

In the novel, Tita the youngest daughter of a family of three sisters plus the mom, became the cook of the household, and through her cooking she tries to connect with her lover, that by the way, marries with her sister.

The mother in the novel is a horrible woman, selfish and authoritarian, a picture of the anti-mama, but yet the person where the household world spins around. Her lack of comprehension leads the whole story, even after her own death. Luckily for Tita she had her "nana" to support her, even too, after she dies. Mother is a deep feeling for somebody, as the feeling of the "nana" for Tita. Tita herself protects and cares for her sister's children during times when they needed her the most.

As a mother, I try to connect with my children in different ways. One of these is cooking for them, so they feel at home, as well I want to transmit to them the enormous culinary culture we are part of. But definitely I don't look forward to be the center of their world.